A Bright Future
by EvilxLittlexNinja
Summary: Fourteen years after becoming part of the bat family, what is Damian's future like? Who will he be sharing it with? Will the villains of Gotham threaten his happiness?
1. Chapter 1

**I wrote this on the notepad app. Just saying.**

* * *

I yawned as I cleaned the last cage of the day. I was on my shift at the animal hospital, and all of these animals were recovering from surgery. they were due home in a few days, and I was here to make sure they were clean, fed, and comfortable. When I clocked out and started my walk home I just wanted to get some sleep for once, but exams were tomorrow and for me it was either study or fail. I had already gotten through four years of college without failing a single class (barely, but that's not the point) and I wasn't going to fail now. I was studying to become a veterinarian, but for now I was just one of many assistants for Dr. Jacobs.

As I neared my street I caught something in the corner of my eye. It was a dirty, bug-ridden kitten. It mewed innocently, gazing up at me with those huge watery eyes.

"Ohhh... You know I can't afford you," I moaned.

The poor thing padded toward me and sniffed my shoe. Then it proceeded to rub its tiny face against my leg, and I felt an all too distinct rumbling coming from its chest.

"Fine. I can't believe you're making me do this" I said as I scooped it up in my arms and began walking again. I thought that would be the most eventful part of my night but I was terribly wrong. As I passed another alleyway I felt someone pull on my jacket and slam me painfully against the brick wall. I felt a rough hand squeeze my neck and the cold barrel of a gun at my temple.

"Don't scream and you won't get hurt," the man breathed cigarette breath into my face. He slowly snaked his hand up my blouse, and his mouth found its way to my neck. I couldn't move, in shock and fear of what was happening. When I finally came to my senses I let out the loudest scream I could muster.

"Bitch!" I felt splintering pain on my temple as he slammed the gun against my head. My vision blurred and I clutched the kitten closer to my chest.

"Well look what we have here. You found my cat," he said. My eyes widened in terror.

"Don't touch him!" I screamed.

"Do you really think you're in a position to make demands?" He whispered in my ear, clutching my throat even harder. I tried to scream but I could barely make a sound. I closed my eyes, praying it would be over soon. But it was sooner than I thought.

"Wha...ahhhhhhh!" The mans voice traveled upwards as I opened my eyes. I looked up to see him hanging from a wire by his feet. I dropped to the muddy concrete in relief and shock, leaving the kitten to sit in my lap. Before I realized it streams of tears were running down my face.

"Are you alright?"

I looked over to see a man dressed in all black with a hood covering his face. I tried to thank him but all that came out was some kind of alien sounding sob. I just nodded. He stood there for awhile, probably, waiting for me to recover, before walking over to me. He placed his gloved hand on my shoulder.

"Do you need me to walk you home?" I wiped my face and stood.

"No I...I'm fine. I live only a few buildings over. Thank you though... for," I looked up, "that."

He nodded, "Next time take a taxi please." He turned to leave.

"Um, do you like cats?" I asked. I can't believe I just said that! Like he's going to agree to this...

"I love cats." He said.

"Oh um... Could you take this kitten?" I asked, holding my breath and holding out the cat. "I know I shouldn't be picking up stray cats but he's just a kitten and I really can't afford -"

"I can take him," he said taking the cat gently from my hands What the hell? This is the best hero ever!

"I'm sorry I would take him but I just can't afford an animal right now."

"It's fine. My cat needs a friend anyway." I could just kiss this man! But I'm not... Because that would be awkward. I just thanked him again.

"Ok well, I'll leave you to take care of him." I said, pointing to the screaming man above us. He nodded. I walked away hoping I would never need to see him again.

Later that night as I tried to study I couldn't get the attack out of my mind. I tried to brush it off, but every time I tried to read the images of my attacker kept flashing through my head. I must have fallen asleep eventually because I woke up the next morning with drool dripping onto my notes.

* * *

Damian stood on top of a building, waiting in the darkness to meet up with his partner. The kitten he had dubbed "Benson" had already fallen asleep in his arms. The cat was completely black except for a small dash of white under his left eye. You'd have to look carefully otherwise you wouldn't know the cat was even there. He blended in with the darkness like he was part of it.

"Hey Little-D. Finished with you're route?" The man who spoke landed a few feet away.

"I've been finished for at least ten minutes, Dick," he said.

"It's Batman right now. Don't use my real name while we're still in costume," he said.

"Tt."

As they made their way back to the mansion Dick noticed the little bundle in Damian's arms.

"Damian, what did Bruce say about picking up strays?"

"He wasn't a stray. He was given to me. And stop treating me like a child," he growled. Dick laughed.

"Sorry. I miss the old Damian from fourteen years ago," he said as they entered the Batcave.

"Don't get sentimental on me, Grayson. I haven't changed." They returned to their normal clothes and met in the kitchen where Bruce was waiting.

"You've changed. You just don't realize it," Dick said, as he reached into the fridge for some leftover pizza from their last movie night.

"Tt." Damian set Benson on the counter and poured some milk in a small dish for him. He looked over at Bruce who was silently reading the newspaper pretending to ignore them.

"You know Father, you don't have to wait up for us. You're retired now. You can actually get some sleep at night," Damian said.

"I know," Bruce replied, "My sleeping patterns just aren't right yet." That was an obvious lie, but neither of the two sons said anything about it. Bruce has already been retired for two years now. He should have retired earlier, but it took a good amount of pushing just to get him to retire when he did. He rolled up his newspaper and left the room, probably going to bed. Damian scooped up Benson and headed toward the front door. Nobody lived at the manor anymore except for Bruce. Dick had gotten married to Barbara and is now living with her, Tim is married and living with Stephanie, and Jason... well he wasn't even living there when Damian moved in. Damian himself was actually reluctant to move out, but Bruce wanted him to have his own separate life outside of crime fighting. This led to somehow convincing Damian to move out. At first he was worried about leaving Bruce all alone with just Alfred for company, but the increasingly frequent visits from Selina that he wasn't supposed to notice reassured him. Now that he thought about it, that's probably the real reason his father kicked him out.

Just as he was about to open the front door he was stopped.

"So who gave you the cat?" Dick asked from behind him. Damian sighed. Why couldn't he just let him leave in peace?

"Just some chick I saved." He opened the door to leave but Dick stopped him again.

"Was she hot?"

Damian slammed the door in his face.

* * *

**Comments, questions, concerns? **

**My main reason for writing this was to give Damian Wayne the bright future he deserved. Hence the title. We all know what happened in the comic and hopefully Damian gets brought back eventually. For now I'm just going to pretend that didn't happen and write this. I love constructive criticism. Anything I can fix?**

**Oh and I haven't read much of the comics so forgive me if I write something inaccurate. Since this is about 14 years in the future there are changes that I just predicted would happen.**

**Any suggestions for the name of Damian's alter ego? **


	2. Chapter 2

**Another chapter in the same day! Woot! Woot! Anyway, this chapter is still sort of an intro to the characters. Don't worry, Damian will show up again in the next chapter. I don't own Batman~**

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I stretched, basking myself in the setting sun as I exited the hospital. I was still in my scrubs, but it was getting warmer outside since spring was just around the corner so I didn't need the warmth of normal clothes anyway. It had been two days since the attack. Sometimes I feel like it was all a dream, like it never even happened. But I know it did. That's why I started carrying a kitchen knife in my purse. I've been taking a taxi home so I haven't really needed it, but today I'm supposed to meet my friend Jackie at Pizza Time. We meet once a week to have dinner, taking turns paying for each other's meals. We were both pretty low on money so doing this actually helped us get a good dinner. She's one of my only high school friends that haven't left Gotham. I try not to think about all of my old friends who decided to escape from the city like it was some sort of plague, but I still think about them sometimes. At first we tried to keep in touch through Facebook, but our conversations grew shorter and shorter and most of us just stopped talking altogether. It was sad, but everyone had there own lives to live now and I wasn't part of their's anymore. Sometimes I got a photo or two from a friend on my email, but it just made me miss them even more. One day when I finally have my degree I'll organize a big vacation for everyone to get together and hang out, just us girls.

I jumped in a taxi and headed toward Pizza Time, wondering why I stayed in Gotham. I've been wondering that since the attack. Why am I still in this rotten city? Why didn't I just go to college somewhere else? I guess I could consider the fact that I grew up here, but so did all of my friends and they LEFT. I can guarantee you that at least thirty percent of Gotham have left after people like the Joker and Scarecrow started popping up.

My parents were probably the ones who kept me here. My father, being the police captain, believed that this city still had a chance. He was the reason my mother stayed too. She was the owner of a small book shop on 22nd Street. They met after a man was shot outside of her shop. My father showed up at the scene with his team, and my mother, being the upfront woman she was, scribbled her number on his notepad. Throughout the next two years they had gotten married and, you guessed it, had me.

I was always raised to believe that justice would always prevail, but of course I was shielded from all the violence and sickness of the city. This ideal was reenforced when I was about seven, I think. When I was in bed on a Sunday night, lying awake probably thinking about what my first day of second grade would be like, I heard screaming outside of my window. This had happened before, but my father usually came in to make sure my window and blinds were closed. This time he didn't, and I had gotten up to look outside. The scream was coming from a women being held at gunpoint by a man in a well pressed suit. It wasn't until later in life that I realized the man was probably part of the mob, but at the time my only thought was that I had to help her. I had opened the window, feeling the cool breeze ruffle my hair, and was about to climb down the fire escape. The sound of the man's scream stopped me, and I looked up to see a large bat-like creature tying the man in the suit up. The woman was crying and thanking it, but it only nodded and flew into the night, dragging the mobster with next morning my dad told me that was the Batman. From then on I had always felt safer in the dark than the light.

This is what the criminals learned to feel too. They started acting out during the day and eventually the Joker decided this was a good idea. When I was about seventeen I was on my way home from school, but all of the traffic had completely stopped. Everybody was getting out of their cars to see what was happening, so I followed suit. I know now that I shouldn't have done that.

"Hellooo people of Gotham!" The Joker greeted through his loudspeaker, "I know everyone has missed me so much since my visit to Arkam, so to celebrate my escape I have captured the peace-loving police captain and his lovely wife." Then he somehow managed to laugh and screech at the same time. I stared up at the top of the building, frozen in fear and shock. My parents, faces painted with wide smiles, stood tall, next to each other on top of the building. There hands were tied and a few of Joker's thugs were holding them in place.

"Now I know what you're thinking," the Joker said, "What's a celebration without piñatas?" He laugh/screeched once again . And well... ropes were put around my parents' necks... and... yea...

I can't remember what happened next, but I know later I was still there, sitting up against the wall of a building staring into space. My face was wet and I felt numb. I remember Batman showing up and the next thing I knew I was in Jackie's house. That's where I stayed, but the second I had the chance to move out I did. Her mom had enough trouble as it was, being a single mother and all.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that if I left Gotham it would feel like leaving my parents behind. If I left it would be like giving up on their dream of Gotham becoming a better city. What kind of daughter would I be if I left? I was already too cowardly to become a cop.

Anyway, now I'm here, in this taxi and heading toward's Pizza Time to meet up with Jackie.

When the taxi finally dropped me off I was waved over by Jackie who was already sitting at one of the tables in their outdoor seating area. She was dressed in khakis and at t-shirt, her curly hair in a ponytail and still wet from her job. She was a marine animal trainer for a small company in the city.

"Hey Shannon, I already ordered for us. Got the usual."

"Thanks. How's it going Jackie?" I asked.

"Actually, pretty great. Know why?" She asked with a sly smile on her face.

"Did Keiko finally learn how to roll over?" I deadpanned. She rolled her eyes and continued to smile even wider. Then she slowly lifted her left hand...

"Oh shit!" I immediately stood up with my hand firmly over my mouth, "Tony proposed!?" I squealed. I couldn't help it, I started squealing and jumping like teenage girl, and Jackie did along with me. After the excitement was over and people finally stopped staring we continued the conversation.

"When did he propose?" I asked.

"Last Sunday, during one of my shows." She said, "You'll be my maid of honor right?"

"O-of course. Yes I'd love too! Have you thought about a date yet?" I asked.

"We are thinking sometime this summer. Maybe sometime in July." She said.  
The waitress finally came with our pizza. I had forgotten about the bruises on my neck, so when I went to put my hair back Jackie immediately gasped.

"Oh my gosh, Shannon what happened!" When she said that I instantly put my hair back in place.

"I'm sorry, I was going to tell you but after your news I just kind of forgot." I said. Ok, I'll admit that was just an excuse. I was just too afraid to tell her.

"What happened?" She asked again.

"I was attacked on my way home from work the other day. This man had me by my neck against the wall in an alley. I'm okay though. One of the heros got there in time. I'm assuming he was a friend of Batman's." I explained. I couldn't help it but my voice cracked. Jackie just sat there, tears in her eyes and horror on her face.

"I'm walking you home from now on." She said. I protested this. We both knew that our schedules would never work out and it was just too much trouble.

"Then take self defense classes with me." She said. Jackie's been taking self defense for about a year now. I've never thought they could help me. I'm pretty hopeless when it comes to fighting.

"I've been carrying a knife in my purse. I'll be fine. You don't have to worry about me." I said.

"Oh yea? And if they have a gun?" She asked, "You don't have a choice in this, Shannon. I'll pay for it if I have to."

"Fine, I'll try it, but I refuse to let you pay. When are they?" I asked.

"He has classes every morning from seven to nine and every evening from eight to ten. I usually go in the mornings," She said with satisfaction.

"Ok I guess I'll meet u there next week?"

"Sounds good to me. And don't worry you won't regret this." She said, "I'll text you the location." At that, we finished our meal and went our separate ways.

As I lay in my bed that night I actually felt a little exited to learn self defense.

* * *

**So any ideas for the name of Damian's alter ego? Still struggling with that...**

**Constructive criticism is loved:)**


	3. Chapter 3

Waking up at six was not something I was used to doing. The earliest I usually wake up is nine, but today was the day I started my self defense classes.

As I was going through my normal morning routine I heard a knock on my apartment door. Immediately I got tense. Nobody I know ever comes over at six in the morning. My heart started pounding. Somebody had just broken into someone's apartment on the floor above mine. What if it was them? I held my breath as I looked through the peep hole.

"Shannon, are you gonna keep me waiting out here all day?" Jackie called from behind the door.

"I thought we were meeting there," I said, surprised at her sudden appearance, "You nearly gave me a heart attack!" I unlocked the door and let her in.

"I forgot about something. We need to get there early. You have _got _to see something," she said with a sly smile on her face. Geez, how cryptic can you get? She then rushed me so fast out the door that I nearly forgot my purse.

"Jackie, you're kind of scaring me. What do you want me to see so badly?" I asked as she flagged down a taxi.

"Ok," she said as we climbed in the back, "This place is called Wayne's Self Defense."

"As in Bruce Wayne!?" I shouted in surprise. Jackie put on another one of her sly smiles.

"Yea except his son owns it. Damian Wayne." She said. My mouth fell open.

"Jackie, that family is - they're famous! How have I not heard of this place before?" I asked. She shrugged her shoulders.

"Damian never does anything interesting. The media just doesn't pay attention to him I guess. They did a coverage of the grand opening last year on TV though," she said.

The taxi finally stopped in front of the place.

"So you still haven't answered my question," I said as we stepped out if the taxi, "What did you want to show me?"

"Well," Jackie said, "We have both agreed that the Wayne family are all gorgeous human beings.."

"Yes..." I said, urging her on.

"So I just thought you would like to see this." She said as she opened the glass door to the gym. I heard grunts and curses coming from within. We walked further to see two men on the mats trading blows. They both had their shirts off and were drenched in sweat. I remember seeing them on TV before. It was Richard Grayson and Damian Wayne. Now this would be fun to watch. Jackie motioned for me to sit on a bench against the wall. I gladly obliged.

"So which of the brothers are your favorite?" She whispered to me as Richard back flipped away from Damian.

"You realize that you're engaged now right?" I asked. Damian landed a kick to Richard's chest.

"Hey, I'm asking _your _opinion. Not mine. Besides, Tony knows I can't resist him," she said.

"Well... who's your favorite?" I asked her. Richard tackled Damian to the ground. It looked like it would've hurt if it weren't for the mats covering the floor.

"I like the eldest," she whispered back. Damian kicked Richard off him.

"But isn't he like ten years older than you?" I asked. The two began to wrestle to get each other pinned.

"So? You swoon over Leonardo DiCaprio. What makes this any different?" She said.

"You make a point." I said. At that point the two brothers had stopped. Damian had Richard pinned.

"You're getting old, Dick," Damian said as he helped the man up.

"Hey! We'll just see who wins next time," he retorted. As I was getting up to introduce myself Jackie caught me by the arm.

"You still haven't answered my question," she whispered.

"The youngest," I said before walking over to the duo.

"Like what you see, ladies?" The eldest of the brothers said. I blushed, taken aback by his boldness. Apparently, Jackie was used to this.

"Of course. Seeing you get your ass whooped is always enjoyable," she replied. I could see Jackie's love for cheesy movies shine through that comeback. I guess Richard shared that love.

"Ooh, that hurts me deeply, Jackie," he said, acting as if he were stabbed. I rolled my eyes. Then his gaze turned to me.

"Hi, I'm Dick," he said, holding out his hand to me. His smile was beyond attractive.

"Shannon. Nice to meet you," I replied, shaking his hand. Damian, who was standing there quietly, finally came forward and introduced himself.

"I assume you're here for the self defense class?" he asked, after we shook hands. I nodded.

"I'll leave you guys to that then. I need to be at the station soon anyway," Dick said, "I need to use your shower again," he told Damian. The younger man only shrugged. Dick grabbed his shirt and made his way to the stairs. On the way he stopped next to me for a split second.

"He's single," he whispered into my ear. My face turned a deep red once again. He chuckled and continued on his way to a set of stairs, which I presumed led to the part of the building where Damian lived.

After I got signed up for the classes it was nearly seven'o'clock and people started milling in. Those stupid butterflies started their fluttering in my stomach and I had the scary feeling that I was about to look really stupid.

* * *

Damian wasn't sure where he was remembering her from, but this new woman seemed familiar. This made him a bit uneasy. He shrugged it off, knowing that he could be a bit psychotic after all these years fighting Gotham's worst. Of course, his father would say that he wasn't being psychotic, he was just aware.

Since she was far behind most of the people in the class so he had everyone get into groups to practice on each other for the first hour. He needed to get her up to par on the basics.

"I'm sorry," he said, "What was your name again?"

"Shannon," she said. She looked a bit awkward, standing there in a plain t-shirt and gym shorts. She just didn't seem like the kind of person to be doing this type of thing. It kind of reminded him of high school gym class. You could always weed out those select few who just weren't cut out for sports.

"Ok Shannon, I'm just going to start you off with something simple," he told her, "If you're being attacked you never want to be caught off your feet. So if somebody comes up to you and pushes you then you have to brace yourself. Here, push me."

She pushed his as hard as she could in the chest. He braced himself by putting one of his feet behind him and crouched. His arms were ready to block any attacks coming his way.

"See? Now I'll do it to you. Make sure your arms are in that blocking position," he said. She nodded. When he pushed her she copied his technique. Since he is much stronger than her she nearly toppled over, but thankfully she kept her footing.

"That was okay," he said, "You'll need to learn how to do this from all sides and make it your instant reaction. So if you really are attacked and caught off guard then you will be ready." She nodded again. He guessed she wasn't much of a talker.

Damian continued pushing her for a good half hour, until he knew that it was drilled into her head. Afterward, he thought it was about time to check up on the other groups.

"Excuse me for a second," he said. He then proceeded to sneak up behind a person and get them in a choke hold from behind. This person flipped Damian over their shoulder like he weighed nothing.

"Very good Ben," Damian said, out of breath. Being thrown on his back like that had knocked the wind out of him.

"Sorry Damian, I just kind of reacted," the man said as he helped him up.

"No need to be sorry. Now we know these classes are working," Damian replied. He then moved on to surprise a few more people and made his way back to Shannon.

"I hope you were watching that," he said.

"Is that what you're going to teach me next?" She asked. She looked a bit overwhelmed by the skill everyone that everyone had. He nodded, and had her attempt to choke him from behind. After showing her step by step what to do, he had her attempt it.

When he put his arm around her neck she froze. He could feel her breathing begin to quicken and he let go. Damian spun her around.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry, I just... I got scared for a moment there," she said, "I was recently attacked. I guess I'm just a little sensitive about it still."

Something clicked in Damian's head. He finally knew why she was familiar. This was the woman who had given him Benson.

"What happened?" He asked even though he already knew the answer. She then explained what had happened.

"You did the right thing in coming here, Shannon. Learning these techniques will help you overcome your fear," he told her, trying to get her to calm down,"But don't worry, I'll help you in this process. It'll just take some time."

"Thank you," she said. He could tell that she was trying to hold back her tears.

"I didn't think it would affect me this much," she admitted. He didn't really know what else to say so he just patted her on the shoulder.

After she had pulled herself together he decided to teach all of the students at once for the last hour of class. He saw Shannon being hugged by Jackie, who apparently saw what had happened. This relieved him a bit, knowing she had somebody who could be there for her. Damian started these classes so Gotham could learn to defend themselves before they're attacked. He and Grayson could only save so many people at once. He hoped that what happened to Shannon will be happening less and less, so he could stop feeling so guilty all the time.

* * *

**Questions, comments, concerns?**

**Thank you to everyone that reviewed! After all of the help I was given for the name of Damian's alter ego I think I've decided on a name. A lot of people said Blackbird would be a good name so I've decided to use that one. There were others that I liked but I can't remember them right now, but I liked Blackbird the best.**

**Also, so far nothing much has happened crime fighting-wise but I plan to start some action with the villains next chapter. **

**Lastly, sorry for this long A/U, but I'm not quite sure how Damian would handle falling in love. Any suggestions? I have a vague idea but it would be nice for others opinions. Damian just seems like a lone wolf to me.**


	4. Chapter 4

It was uncommonly cold that night and hopefully this meant that most of the criminals were inside keeping themselves warm. This was only a small and unlikely hope. Damian was patrolling that night and he had yet to run across any criminal activity. Even considering the temperature, this was strange. Yes, most if the major criminals were either in jail or Arkam, even Joker has been locked up for at least two years now, but there was always someone causing trouble.

Still, the quietness of the city troubled him. As he made his way to the docks he contacted Grayson through the device attached to his ear.

"You seen any trouble yet?" He asked.

"Nope," Grayson answered, "I don't like it."

"Me neither," he said, "I'm checking out the docks. Maybe there will be a trade going on."

When he made his way to the edge of the city he spotted something. It was a warehouse and people were filtering through its doors, each of them being patted down. He landed on its roof and looked through one of its windows. He saw a man speaking to the crowd of people. He was standing in front of an unconscious body, which looked to be a girl around the age of twelve with short blonde hair. What surprised Damian was the pentagram drawn in blood underneath the girl. He planted his ear on the cold glass.

"...stolen our leaders from us!" The man said. His voice was muffled from the glass but still audible, "We need a leader who can stand up to the bats!" The crowd began to cheer and that was when Damian decided to intervene.

"Hey, Batman. Think I found where most of the criminals went. Warehouse number thirteen. I'm going in," he said through his communicator. He attached an explosive to the window and got back.

"Could you at least wait a few seconds?" Grayson asked.

"Nope," he said, and the explosive detonated. He flew in, heading for the girl. He landed a few feet away.

"Dammit! It's BlackBird! Keep him back!" The leader said. Men began to charge at him, expecting to hold him back. Damian was a bit surprised that they tried to take him without their weapons. He broke a man's arm and simultaneously kicked a man in the jaw. They were on the floor before the next man wrapped his arm around his neck. He through the man to the floor. As he fought them the leader chanted something in another language and set the pentagram on fire. _What!?_, Damian thought, _Blood isn't flammable. This isn't possible!_ Just then bullets began to fly. The criminals had finally gotten to the weapons that were stripped of them before walking into the warehouse. This was turning bad fast, but it was nothing that Damian didn't expect. He quickly through down a couple of smoke bombs and grabbed the girl in the confusion that followed. He grappled back to the roof with her in his arms. Her clothes were a bit singed from the pentagram but she seemed to be okay. Then, he heard a thump next to him on the roof.

"Is she okay?" Grayson asked.

"She seems to be," Damian said.

"What happened down there?" He asked.

"I'm not really sure," Damian said, "They were doing some kind if magic or something. I'll explain back at the cave. Right now I've gotta get this girl home." He said. He softly shook the girl's shoulder. She groaned in response and slowly opened her eyes. At first she screamed, but then she realized who she was with.

"Batman...BlackBird...where am I?" She asked.

"On top of a warehouse on the edge of the city," Damian replied, helping her up, "What were they planning to do to you?" He asked. She shrugged, her lip starting to quiver.

"I dunno, ask for a ransom? I was knocked out every time I would wake back up." She said, her voice cracking. Damian sighed in frustration.

"Where do you live?," Grayson asked.

"An apartment on Maple Street," she said, tears falling down her face, "Sorry, I guess it's all just catching up to me."

"It's okay, you're fine now.I'll take you back," he said, and then turned to Damian, "Meet you back at the cave?" Damian nodded and leaped off the roof, heading to the cave.

Later, Damian and Dick were in the cave trying to figure out the criminal's intentions. Damian had briefed Dick on what happened.

"If he said that they needed a new leader... And there was a pentagram drawn on the floor... Do you think he was trying to summon the devil?" Grayson asked.

"I thought the same thing, but really? Do you think that they actually believe in that shit?" Damian said.

"I don't really think it matters what they believe, as long as we know that it'll never work. If you think about it, this is actually a good thing. As long as their focused on their little witchcraft experiment they won't be focusing on actually committing crimes," Dick said.

"Well they did kidnap that girl," Damian said.

"At least that's all they did. We'll just have to watch out for any more kidnappings." They both stood there for a moment in silence.

"Do you think we should ask Raven about it? If anyone knew if this could work, she would," Damian asked.

"It wouldn't hurt," Grayson said. He contacted Titans Tower through the main computer. It was Tim who answered.

"Yell-O?," Tim said, his face popping up on the screen.

"Dork," Damian muttered under his breath.

"What did you just say ass- "

"OKAY, we're not here to pick a fight," Dick interrupted, "We need to talk to Raven."

"Wow, thought you guys might have missed me for a second. What do you need to talk to Raven for?" Tim asked.

"Just get her," Damian barked. Tim just glared.

"Please," Dick said. Tim growled and marched away. A few moments later Raven appeared on the screen.

"Yes?" She asked. Damian quickly relayed what he had seen that night.

"Is it possible to summon the devil like that? Even a human?" Dick asked.

"I wouldn't know anything about the devil," she said, sounding like they just interrupted her meditation, "I'm from Azarath, not Hell, and as far as I know, the devil isn't real." The brothers felt disappointment for a moment.

"But rituals like that aren't for summoning the devil," she said, "They are used for summoning anything from the other dimensions, but a normal human couldn't summon anything, let alone perform the ritual correctly." They sighed in relief.

"We didn't think much of it anyway," Dick said, "We just wanted to be sure."

"Is that all?" Raven asked.

"Yes, thank you," Dick said, and she severed the connection. The two brothers stood there,once again, in silence.

"This is still gonna bug me," Damian admitted.

"What the flammable blood? Me too," Dick said.

They decided to look more into this problem tomorrow. There was only three more hours until daylight and they needed to retire for the night.

* * *

**Comment, Questions, Concerns?**

**Sorry if this seemed a bit rushed. I just wrote it today. I've been thinking about how I wanted the plot to go all week and doing a bit more research.**

**Sorry if the small biblical reference offended anybody, although I don't think too many people could get offended by it. idk, sorry anyway.**


	5. Chapter 5

After my morning self defense class and my twelve'o'clock lecture on epidemiology I planned on meeting Jackie and Tony for lunch to discuss the wedding. I have never been involved with the planning process before so I've done a bit of research. The first step is to figure out when and where they wanted to be married. Of course it would have to be somewhere cheap, but that wasn't a problem. I already had a destination in mind. As I was going through this fantasy wedding in my mind, my phone buzzed. It was a text from Jackie.

'_Cory's here. Tony picked him as his best man. Sry_'

My mouth dropped open in shock. Cory was my ex-boyfriend. Not only that, but he was a criminal. Now before you start judging me I would just like to say that I didn't know this while we were dating. It was because he was a criminal that I broke it off. You see, we had been dating for a year and he was a really great guy at first. Then, I started noticing that he wasn't around as much and I had no idea where he was going or what he was doing. I thought he was cheating and I confronted him about it. He said he wasn't but he wouldn't tell me what he had been doing. When I threatened to break it off he admitted to working for Falcone. He said that he had been making more money that he had ever made before. He had been saving that money for a ring, to propose to me. I told him that I didn't care about some stupid ring, but he wouldn't listen. He wanted to get us a house and told me that I wouldn't have to work ever again, but I refused to go along with this dream. It broke my heart, but I had to leave him. My morals just wouldn't let me stay. Hopefully, now that I was out of his life, he didn't have to work for Falcone anymore, but I doubt Falcone would let him leave.

I never told anyone about his criminal activity. After all he's one of Tony's best friends. How could I? I couldn't break up their friendship like that, and, as much as as I wish I didn't, I still loved him.

After getting out of the taxi I headed into the sub shop, and prepared myself to see Cory. I spotted him immediately, sitting at a table with Jackie and Tony. He hasn't changed at all since the last time I saw him. It made my heart ache. Jackie noticed me first and waved me over and gave me a pitying expression. When I sat down I tried my best to ignore Cory's existence.

We began to talk about where the wedding should be and I pitched them my idea. I thought that they could have it at a church on the outskirts of Gotham. That way the ceremony could be in the field adjacent to the church. Thankfully they loved the idea. After talking for a good hour we finished our lunch and parted ways.

As I was walking around a corner I was stopped when someone grabbed my arm. I spun around to see Cory looking at me like we had never broken up.

"We need to talk, Shannon."

* * *

Damian was sitting in the back of the sub shop with Grayson. They were waiting for Todd to show up so they could discuss that criminal gathering the other night. He had seen a couple of his students show up but he had decided not to show himself.

"You're so antisocial, Damian," Grayson said when he noticed him staring at the group of people.

"What? Just because I don't want to get up and interrupt their conversation?" He retorted.

"No, because you won't ask her out," he said.

"How can you call me antisocial for that? What if I just don't like her?" He asked.

"Dude, she's gorgeous. How can you not like her?"

"Ok even if I was interested, that guy across from her is probably her boyfriend."

"Nice excuse. She's not even speaking to him."

"Look, I'm just not interested in a relationship right now. I've got to work on this case," Damian said.

"You've been saying the same thing for years. It's just an excuse," Grayson said.

"You should just let me handle my own love life," Damian said.

They sat there eating in silence until Grayson's lunch break was soon to be over. Todd had never shown up. As they were walking to their cars they spotted Shannon and the man she was sitting across from. They seemed to be in some sort of argument and Shannon looked a bit distressed to say the least. Grayson looked like he was about to intervene, but before he could do so someone else did.

"Look what we have here. Falcone's bitch. Tell me, how's that old fuck doin nowadays?"

* * *

**Comments, Questions, Concerns?**

**This is a bit shorter than normal, but I felt late in posting this chapter so I thought this would be a good place to stop. And just in case anyone was wondering, I put my disclaimer on my profile so I don't have to write it every chapter.**

**Also, you may have noticed that I never really give details on what people look like. I did this so you guys could imagine what they would look like to you. Thinking about this got me curious. What do you think my characters look like?**


	6. Chapter 6

Dammit. How did I let Cory get me alone like this? What the hell could he have to say to me?

"What to you want?" I said, crossing my arms.

"I still love you," he said. When I began to turn around he grabbed my arm again.

"Wait," he said, "I'm sorry I didn't mean to say that. It just came out." I turned back around and glared at him, waiting for him to finish.

"Look," he said, "I just wanted to tell you that I think it's a good time for you to take a vacation."

"What?" I said. Was he completely out of his mind? After we had just decided on our duties to prepare for the wedding he tells me to take a vacation? He hasn't even seen me for a year! How can he even know if I need a vacation or not?

"Yea. Get out of Gotham. Go to Florida to visit your aunt." He said. So that's it. He wanted me out of Gotham.

"Tell me the truth, Cory," I said. He took a long breath, probably thinking about his next lie.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," he said, "It's just not safe in Gotham anymore."

"In case you hadn't noticed," I said, "it's never been safe in Gotham."

"You don't understand," he said, "There's something weird going on right now and I want you out of it."

"You should be telling the commissioner about this, not me," I told him, "You know I can't leave. I've got the rest of the semester to finish and the wedding. Besides, if what you're saying is true, that something bad is going to happen, then I wouldn't run away and desert my friends. I am not a coward like you!" At this point people began to stare so I decided that it was about time to end this argument. Before I had to turn around and leave though, I heard a man shouted something very unexpected.

"Look what we have here. Falcone's bitch. Tell me, how's that old fuck doin nowadays?"

* * *

Damian gritted his teeth in irritation. Of course it would be like Todd to cause a commotion like this and without his identity concealed nonetheless. He followed behind Grayson who made his way over to intervene.

"Who the fuck are you?" The man replied to Todd.

"None of your fuckin' business," Todd said as he grabbed hold of the man's collar, "We need to chat."

"Hey, get off of him!" Shannon yelled.

"Hands off Jason," Grayson said as he walked up. Todd dropped the man and turned to face them. The man then proceeded to run away as fast as humanly possible.

"C'mon Goldie! I was getting valuable information!" Todd said. Before Grayson could respond Shannon decided to speak up.

"What is wrong with you!?" She growled.

"Was I speaking to you, bitch?" Todd replied. Shannon looked like she was about to explode.

"Woah there," Grayson said, raising his arms between the two, "Jason, could you please go wait inside where we were supposed to meet an hour ago?"

"Fine," Todd said, "but you're gonna regret letting that bastard go." He walked away and entered the sub shop, slamming the door on his way.

"You know that guy?" Shannon asked them, still looking really pissed.

"Yea," Grayson said, "He's our brother. Sorry about that. He can be a bit..."

"Of a douche? Yea I gathered," she said. Damian smirked. The three of them stood there for a moment in an awkward silence and Damian was wondering why Grayson just didn't follow Todd into the shop.

"So...uh... Where are you headed?" Grayson asked her.

"I'm actually on my way to pick up some chairs for the wedding. I just need to figure out how to get them to my apartment." The moment she said that it looked as if a lightbulb went off in Grayson's head. It made Damian nervous.

"Damian has a truck. He could help with that." And just like that Damian, who had been trying to blend into the background and not become involved, was involved.

"Really? You would do that?" She asked, turning to him.

"Sure," Damian replied, "I don't have anything else I'm doing until my next class anyway."

"Wow, thanks," she said.

"No problem," he said. It was true. He really didn't mind helping her, and he really did like to help people. Otherwise he would've quit being BlackBird a long time ago. The thing that irritated him was the fact that he knew Grayson's main goal in volunteering him was to hopefully get him romantically involved with this woman. Damian knew Grayson meant well, but he'd rather him stay out of his love life.

Before he led her to his pickup, Damian made sure to make Grayson promise to fill him in on his conversation with Todd later. Although, he had a hunch that Todd didn't know much. He believed Todd when he said that they were going to regret letting that bastard go.

* * *

When I got in Damian's pickup the strong smell of cat litter pervaded my nose. I glanced back and spotted a bag of it in the back seat sitting next to a stack of books. I chuckled to myself.

"I didn't peg you as a cat person," I said as I buckled my seatbelt. The truth was, I didn't peg him as an animal person in general.

"I have two," he said, "One is so old he can't even hear anymore." I felt a pang of sadness. I knew how hard it was to see a pet deteriorate like that. I remember having a labrador as a child and I was always so worried for her when she got older. Every time I caught her taking a nap I would wake her up to make sure she was still alive. I knew that one day she wouldn't wake up, but no matter how much I tried to prepare myself for it her death still hit me hard. Even knowing how hard it was, I wasn't going to try to console him. I knew pity only made it worse.

"What's its name?" I asked.

"Alfred," he said, "The other is called Benson."

"Well if you have any questions about them just ask me. I have three more years of vet school left so I'm not saying I know everything, but I know a good bit. I just don't want any of my friends racing off to the vet to answer something that I could probably answer," I said, "Vets are expensive. Of course, I doubt you have to worry about that."

"True, but thank you for the offer," he said,"Now where are we going?"

"Oh, sorry. I probably should've told you that before you started driving. We're going to Al's. You know where that is?" I asked. He nodded and abruptly turned right. This caused me to slam against the door, pain blooming in my elbow. I guess I deserved that.

We arrived at the furniture store in only a few minutes and luckily Jackie's order was in. There were thirty plain brown chairs that I had volunteered to paint. It took four trips just to get them to my apartment.

"Hey Damian," I said as we carried the last of the chairs up the staircase.

"Yes?" He asked.

"This will probably sound random, but you like to read right?" I asked.

"How did you know?" He asked.

"Spotted the stack of books in your truck," I said, "Anyway, I just finished reading The Crucible yesterday. Have you read it?" We set the last if the chairs down in my now filled apartment.

"No I don't believe I have," he said. I smiled to myself. I loved letting people borrow my books so I could see their own reactions to them as they read. I guess this is a bit nerdy but discussing books is one of my favorite things to do. This is why I decided to dash into my bedroom and snatch the book off of my bed. I walked back to Damian and handed it to him.

"You have to read it," I said, "It doesn't exactly have a happy ending, but it's really thought provoking."

"Tt. Don't spoil it if you want me to read it," he said. At that, we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. I couldn't wait to pester him about it during defense class.

* * *

**Questions, comments, concerns? **

**I don't own The Crucible but it's a good book and I recommend it. I believe it's by Arthur Miller.**

**Sorry for this being kinda late. I was in a play and opening night was last week so I didn't actually start writing this until that was over with. Plays are so stressful!**

**Also, this story's probably kind of boring so far but it should pick up soon. I'm just trying to make the relationship as realistic as I can while staying true to Damian's character. Hope you like it so far!**


	7. Chapter 7

Damian growled when he felt the first drop of rain hit his suit. Of course it would rain while he was on patrol.

As he made his way to the northern part of the city the rain increased until it was pelting his body. So far he had only caught someone breaking into a store. There was no activity from the major criminals and it disturbed him. Ever since that night in the warehouse something has been off.

As he was passing a small bank he spotted something. He grappled over to get a closer look. It was a body laying on the cement. He leaped down and realized that he recognized him: It was George McNeal, one of Falcone's men. He checked the man's pulse to make sure he was dead before examining the scene. There was five hundred dollars in cash laying about three feet away from the body, scattered everywhere. He assumed that whatever happened probably wasn't a robbery and began looking for any wounds.

There was none. Not even a speck of blood. Maybe it could have been a heart attack? A stroke? This deduction didn't make sense to him though. The man looked to be in his late twenties and was in good shape. Poison maybe? He wouldn't know until a full autopsy was done.

"Hey, Blackbird," his earpiece omitted.

"Here," he told Grayson.

"I've found a body," Grayson said.

"What a coincidence. Me too."

* * *

This morning I decided to go to my self defense class a bit early. I'm curious to see how far Damian had gotten into the book I gave him.

I remember when I first read The Crucible, and I didn't really understand it at first. The things that the characters did, the choices they made, just didn't seem rational. Over time I began to understand and it made me realize that those people were probably ten times the person I could ever be. The characters had a choice: Just tell a lie or be hanged. Seemed like a simple choice when I thought about it, but as I learned, it wasn't. These people had solid morals and beliefs that they stuck with until the end. It made me feel like a coward.

I chuckled to myself as I opened the door to Damian's class. I loved to learn from books, but sometimes it could be depressing.

"Hello?" I called out. That was weird: The place was empty. I was only twenty minutes early. He should be here. Then I heard footsteps coming down the stairs and Damian's head popped around the corner with a toothbrush in his mouth.

"Shit. What time is it?" He asked. I rolled my eyes.

"You have twenty minutes." I said. A look of relief passed across his face before he disappeared again. It wasn't long until he came back down, but this time he had a book in his hand.

"You finished already?" I asked when he handed it to me.

"Yup," he said, walking toward the rolled up mats against the wall. I followed him and began to help roll them out.

"So did you like it?" I asked.

"I'm not sure yet," he said, "You could have warned me about the ending."

"That would be spoiling it, which you specifically told me not to do," I replied. We finished rolling out the mats and were standing in their center.

"True," he said, "I guess it was just disturbing to think about. A whole population being controlled by their fear."

"Hey, now you know not to let feat control you," I said.

"Arn't I the one who is supposed to be teaching you?" He asked, a smirk in his face.

"True," I said, laughing.

"How's your neck?" He asked. I frowned. It had been about a month since the attack and I had barely thought about it until now.

"The bruising is finally gone." I replied.

"Are you ready to test yourself?" He asked. I shrugged my shoulders.

"We could try," I said. He nodded and we walked over toward the wall.

"Ready?" He asked. I swallowed trying to calm the butterflies in my stomach. I took a breath and nodded. Damian took my neck in his hand and placed me against the wall. I held my breath, waiting for the flashes of memory.

They never came.

"Wow," I said, "I feel fine." Now that I had recovered from the anxiety I realized how close we were to each other. I felt a blush creep up my cheeks. Apparently he had seen this because he quickly stepped back. He tried to look away before I could see it, but it was obvious he was blushing too. Awkward.

Luckily, people began to come through the doors and the class could get started.

* * *

Later that night I was flipping through the channels of my puny TV with a medical dictionary in my lap. I knew that I probably shouldn't be watching TV while I was studying, but I needed a break anyway. As I changed the channel I spotted a familiar face: It was George McNeal, one of Cory's friends. His mug shot was on the screen along with four others. I quickly turned up the volume.

The more I listened to the broadcast the more confused I became. All five of those men were found dead, but there didn't seem to be a cause. What's worse is that they were found at completely random spots around the city. This made the police think that they may have been targeted. Who could kill someone without leaving a single trace? It's like their heart just stopped beating for no reason.

Then something struck me. If gang members were being targeted, was Cory in danger?

I leaped from the couch and dived for my phone. It was a good thing I still knew his number by heart because I deleted it awhile ago. When I typed in the numbers I held my breath as I waited for him to pick up, but the phone went straight to voicemail. Crap.

* * *

**Questions, comments, concerns?**

**Sorry I'm so late with this. I can't believe I let it go a month! Although, I must say I was having some major writer's block on this one. I didn't quite know how to break the ice with Damian. He has so many walls! I also had finals last week so that also contrubuted to the lateness.**

**Also, I just finished watchnig Lost. Just sayin, it was amazing. That TV show got me so emotional!**


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